Cellular Respiration Overview

These flashcards cover key vocabulary and concepts related to cellular respiration, including processes, pathways, and cellular structures involved in energy production.

Isomerization

The process of converting one isomer into another, such as glucose-6-phosphate to fructose-6-phosphate.

Aerobe

An organism that requires oxygen to grow and metabolize.

Anaerobe

An organism that can grow and metabolize without oxygen.

Facultative anaerobe

An organism capable of aerobic respiration but can switch to fermentation when oxygen is unavailable.

Cellular respiration

The process through which cells generate ATP by removing electrons from various molecules and passing them through electron carriers to a final electron acceptor.

Aerobic respiration

A type of cellular respiration that requires oxygen as the final electron acceptor.

Anaerobic respiration

A type of cellular respiration that occurs without oxygen and uses an inorganic molecule as the final electron acceptor.

Fermentation

An ATP-generating process where organic compounds act as donors and acceptors of electrons, occurring in the absence of oxygen.

Mitochondrion

The organelle in eukaryotic cells where cellular respiration and ATP synthesis occur.

Glycolysis

The first stage of cellular respiration that breaks down glucose into two molecules of pyruvate.

Acetyl-CoA

A key intermediate in metabolism formed from the conversion of pyruvate, necessary for the Krebs cycle.

Krebs Cycle

Also known as the citric acid cycle; a metabolic cycle fueled by Acetyl-CoA that generates ATP and electron carriers.

Electron Transport Chain (ETC)

A sequence of electron-carrier molecules in the inner mitochondrial membrane that shuttles electrons and generates a proton gradient.

Chemiosmosis

The process of producing ATP using the energy of a proton gradient created by the electron transport chain.

Oxidative phosphorylation

The production of ATP using energy derived from the electron transport chain to phosphorylate ADP.

Substrate-level phosphorylation

The production of ATP by the direct transfer of a phosphate group to ADP using energy from chemical reactions.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS)

Highly reactive molecules derived from oxygen that can cause damage to DNA, proteins, and lipids.

Oxidative stress

A condition resulting from an imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species and the cell's ability to eliminate them.

Feedback inhibition

A regulatory mechanism in cellular respiration where the end product of a pathway inhibits an earlier step.

Toxic effects of oxygen

Oxygen can produce reactive oxygen species during metabolism, which can be harmful to cellular structures.

Strict anaerobes

Organisms that cannot survive in the presence of oxygen.

Facultative anaerobes

Organisms that can grow in both the presence and absence of oxygen.

ATP Synthase

An enzyme that synthesizes ATP from ADP and inorganic phosphate using a proton gradient.